Public Schools Planning Workshops

About the Program

Category: Planning (Best in Category)

Year: 2020

The Public Schools Planning Workshops sought to address two main problems. First, long-range planning efforts typically glean input from residents over the age of fifty, leaving planners to guess the preferences of younger generations. Secondly, students are rarely exposed to the planning profession and are not aware that it is a career option when they are making college plans. The program is a collaboration between Roanoke County, the City of Roanoke and Roanoke County Public Schools. In November 2017, a team of planners met with the Roanoke County Student Advisory Council. Our objective was to involve them in the planning process, solicit their input for the Oak Grove Center Plan, and get their ideas about involving younger generations in community planning. Students participated in several interactive planning exercises. Student feedback informed four subsequent workshops that were held at the elementary, middle and high schools nearest to Oak Grove. The Public Schools Planning Workshops program successfully addressed the two main problems. The program is straightforward and mobile enough to be used repeatedly throughout the area’s school systems, and can easily be adapted to other localities. Furthermore, the inter-jurisdictional collaboration has opened the door for future regional cooperation and planning efforts.